


Must Be Something In The Air

by la_muerta



Series: going away to college [1]
Category: Shadowhunters (TV)
Genre: Alternate Universe - College/University, Alternate Universe - Human, First Kiss, First Meetings, First Time, Fluff, Fluff and Smut, Kink Meme, M/M, Mile High Club, Ok maybe a wee bit of plot, Plot What Plot/Porn Without Plot, Porn with Feelings, Semi-Public Sex, Smut, Virgin Alec Lightwood
Language: English
Status: Completed
Published: 2018-09-09
Updated: 2018-09-09
Packaged: 2019-07-10 07:24:08
Rating: Explicit
Warnings: No Archive Warnings Apply
Chapters: 1
Words: 3,481
Publisher: archiveofourown.org
Story URL: https://archiveofourown.org/works/15944555
Author URL: https://archiveofourown.org/users/la_muerta/pseuds/la_muerta
Summary: Alec has never travelled so far away from home alone. Away from his friends and family for the first time, he's finally free to be whoever he wants to be - and maybe he wants to be the kind of guy who says 'yes' when the hot guy sitting next to him asks him if he wants to join him in the mile high club, whatever that is.





	Must Be Something In The Air

**Author's Note:**

> Written to fill this prompt from [Round One of the Shadowhunters Kinkmeme](https://shadowhunters-kink.dreamwidth.org/715.html): Human AU, virgin or inexperienced/repressed Alec meets Magnus on a long haul flight, mile high club.

 

 

Alec leaned back in his seat, closed his eyes, and let the sounds of people on the plane getting ready for take-off wash over him: passengers loading their carry-ons in the overhead bins, murmured apologies and conversations, flight attendants brisk walking down the aisles. This was the first time Alec was travelling so far away from home on his own, and while he'd miss Izzy, Jace, Max, and his parents, he had to admit he was a little relieved too - because for the first time in his life, Alec wouldn't have to resist the urge to take a second look when a hot guy walked past. 

It wasn't that nobody knew. Izzy did, of course, and Alec had finally mustered the courage to come out to his best friend Jace a couple of years ago. Maryse Lightwood probably suspected, judging from the way she'd glare at Robert whenever he made any off-colour and casually homophobic jokes. But coming from a small, conservative town in the Bible belt where everybody knew everybody else, Alec just hadn't been very comfortable being open about his sexuality. Besides, Alec's dating pool was pretty limited anyway, considering he knew of all of two gay guys around his age - and they had been dating each other since high school. Now, Alec was on the way to Cambridge for his studies, where nobody knew him, and he was free to be whoever he wanted to be. It was exciting, and also kind of frightening.

Someone bumped against his leg, and Alec's eyes flew open. 

"Oh, I'm sorry I woke you." 

Alec looked up and forgot how to breathe. 

Broad shoulders. Strong jawline. An Adam's apple so prominent that it sent Alec's mind spiralling into several fantasies. A brilliant smile, directed at him. And those eyes, lovely and warm, the dark eyeliner setting them off perfectly.

Alec suddenly realised that his mouth was hanging open and shut it with a snap. 

"Wasn't sleeping. It's ok," he mumbled. "Is my stuff in the way, or...?"  

"It's not you, darling, it's me," the hot guy said with a grin and a wink. He was trying to shove something into the overhead bin at Alec's seat, and Alec dared to hope that he was sitting somewhere near Alec.

While the hot guy was concentrating on making his luggage fit, Alec took the opportunity to check him out, hopefully unnoticed. Hot Guy's chest-to-waist ratio was unreal, and the way his arm muscles were bulging and flexing under his short sleeves was mesmerising. Alec hadn't really seen guys wearing make-up and nail polish before this, but he made it look so good, and his outfit was _amazing_. Hot Guy was tall and didn't have to reach up much, but his shirt was still riding up just enough to expose a tantalising glimpse of tanned skin and washboard abs, and his pants were so fucking tight that Alec had a clear view of a very mouth-watering bulge at the front.

Hot Guy closed the lid of the compartment overhead, and Alec made a wild grab for the flight safety pamphlet in front of him to hide the fact that he'd been staring at his crotch. 

"Sorry, excuse me," he said to Alec, and gestured at the window seat next to Alec. 

"Oh, ok. Let me just..." Alec stood up hurriedly to let him squeeze past, struggling not to react in any way when Hot Guy's ass almost brushed his crotch. If Hot Guy noticed, he was nice enough not to say anything about it.

"Looks like we're going to be spending quite a bit of time together," Hot Guy said as he settled down. "I'm Magnus."

Alec shook the hand that he offered. "Alec."  

They were on a 7-hour red eye flight from New York to London. Alec had never been a religious sort of guy, but for the first time in his life, he prayed to whatever gods that were listening that the seat between them would remain empty. 

 

 

The seat between them did remain empty, but meal service for dinner began almost immediately after the plane was comfortably in the air, and everything was so hectic that Alec didn't really get a chance to speak much to Magnus. All he really managed to do was find out that Magnus liked cats, was currently single, was also going to the UK for his studies (master's in chemical engineering), and that he was going to be staying with a family friend. He told Magnus a bit about his siblings, and that he was going to study physics, but left out the Cambridge part - people tended to make a big fuss about that. 

After meal service was over, it was lights-out in the cabin, and Alec was slightly annoyed to find that he was too keyed up to sleep. It wasn't just the incessant whine of the engine, or the musty smell of recycled air in the plane - or even the fact that the hottest guy Alec had ever seen was sitting right next to him. Honestly, it didn't really seem like it'd be worth the effort to try to sleep when he'd have to wake up in a few hours for whatever passed for breakfast. Unfortunately, it was too dark to read a book, and it seemed really rude to even turn on the small, unreasonably bright personal screen to watch a movie. 

By mutual agreement, Alec and Magnus had moved the arm rests between them out of the way so that both of them could have a bit more space to stretch out. Magnus was leaning against the window, and Alec could feel his eyes on him as Alec shifted around in a futile attempt to get comfortable on the cramped, hard economy class seats. Alec had just about resigned himself to staring at the ceiling for the next few hours when Magnus scooted a little closer.

"Not used to sleeping on a plane?" he asked in a low voice.  

"Yeah, but also I'm just not sleepy."

"Are you nervous about starting school in a new place?"

"No, it's not that, I..." Alec frowned. "Huh. Maybe a little, I guess. This is the first time I'll be away from home alone."

Magnus made a sympathetic noise. "You should probably try to get some rest, though. Navigating London on your own is bad enough, much less on no sleep."

"Yeah, but I'm all..." Alec gestured helplessly. "I can't relax."

Normally, Alec's go-to remedy for a sleepless night was to jerk off. And honestly, it wasn't like he hadn't just acquired some new material for his spank bank, but it seemed a bit skeevy to be jerking off to fantasies about Magnus when he was sitting right next to him. His gaze flickered to Magnus' body, from his muscular thighs in those insanely tight pants, up his fit body, all the way up to Magnus' eyes - and Alec blushed when he realised that Magnus had been watching Alec while he'd been giving him a once-over. 

But Magnus didn't seem disgusted or upset. Instead, he leaned forward a little more. "Want to join me in the mile high club?" he whispered. 

Alec frowned in confusion at the abrupt change of topic, wondering if Magnus was perhaps a salesperson for membership to said club. "Uh... you know, I don't know if it'd be worth it for me. I don't travel all that much to justify paying for a frequent-flyer club membership."

Magnus' eyes widened in surprise, then he ducked his head, obviously trying not to laugh.

"What?" Alec asked self-consciously.

Magnus grinned and leaned even closer, close enough that Alec could feel his breath tickling the sensitive spot just behind his ear. "I'm asking you if you want to have sex with me, Alec."

"What?" Alec repeated stupidly, certain that he'd heard Magnus wrongly, then his brain caught up with his mouth and he quickly added, "Where? When? How? ...Why?"

This time Magnus was much less successful at stifling his laughter. Someone a few rows down actually sat up to glare at them across the semi-darkness. Magnus clapped a hand over his own mouth, shoulders shaking with suppressed laughter, until he managed to get a hold on himself. 

"Sorry, I didn't mean to laugh at you. Maybe I'm a little bit nervous too. I've never tried having sex on a plane," Magnus said quietly. 

"And you want to do it with me?" Alec asked in bewilderment. "Why me? We've only just met."

"Well, you're cute, and I thought... I've made things weird, haven't I?" Magnus said with a grimace. "Sorry, never mind."

"No! I..." Alec licked his lips. He'd been playing safe all his life, and now he was free to be whoever he wanted to be - and maybe new Alec was the kind of guy who seized the day when a hot guy wanted to hook up with him. "How do we do this?" he asked with a bit more confidence.

Magnus looked surprised but pleased. He glanced behind him. "I'm going to head to the toilet on the left now. Join me in a couple of minutes?" 

Alec nodded and stood up for Magnus to get past. This time, Magnus most definitely brushed his ass against Alec's crotch on purpose, winking at Alec before he went off down the aisle. Alec sat back down, wiping his palms on his jeans nervously, already half-hard with anticipation. He kept glancing backwards, watching Magnus' progress to the back of the cabin, then waited until he saw Magnus shut the door before he got up to follow him.

 

 

Alec pushed lightly on the door, and it opened with a slight creak. He stepped in quickly and closed the door with some difficulty, locking it behind him. The space inside was so small that there was barely a hair's breadth between him and Magnus. Before he had time to think that maybe this was a really bad idea, Magnus nudged his legs apart and stepped even closer, pressing their bodies together - and now they were touching from crotch to chest, and Alec could feel that Magnus was half-hard too. His mouth fell open in a gasp, and Magnus kissed him.

Never in his wildest dreams had Alec ever imagined that his first kiss would be like this. Magnus' lips were so soft, and tasted faintly of something sweet, probably his lip gloss. He put his arms around Magnus' waist, moaning softly when Magnus slipped his tongue into his mouth. Feeling bold, he reached a little lower to grab Magnus' ass and was rewarded with an answering moan from Magnus. In no time at all they were grinding against each other, tongues sliding against each other and swallowing each other's groans of pleasure. 

Alec felt Magnus' hands at the button of his jeans and reluctantly let go of Magnus' ass to undo his fly.

"Wait," Magnus panted into his mouth, and took something out of his pocket - a tiny bottle of hand lotion. 

They did their best to push their pants and underwear out of the way, and Magnus poured the lotion over their hands before wrapping his hand around Alec's cock. Alec bit his lower lip hard in an effort to stop himself from coming on the spot as Magnus began to pump him slowly. He reached for Magnus' cock with trembling hands, groaning in appreciation at the warm weight of it. He couldn't really see it, their bodies pressed too close together, so he could only use his hands to learn the shape of it. He wasn't very sure what to do, but he guessed that whatever felt good to him would probably feel good for Magnus too, and began to stroke Magnus in tandem to the rhythm of Magnus' hand on his cock. Magnus' breath hitched and he bit on his own lip to stay quiet, hips thrusting forward into Alec's grip, and Alec marvelled that he could make Magnus look so wrecked. Then Magnus slotted their cocks together, rearranging Alec's hand so that they could both fuck into the slick channel formed by their hands, and Alec gasped sharply. 

How had he gone from never having even kissed anybody, to having someone else's hand on his cock and the hard length of another dick sliding against his own within the space of a few minutes? Alec was already feeling light-headed, although it might also have been the lack of oxygen in the tiny space. It was incredible, and overwhelming, and he felt like he had been holding himself at the edge of his climax forever, desperately trying to last a little longer. Magnus began to kiss his neck, licking and sucking gently from Alec's jawline to his collar; then he bit down, sucking a little harder at a spot just above the collar of Alec's shirt, and that was it for Alec.

His mouth fell open with pleasure and he gasped as he came, eyes squeezed shut and still fucking into their joined hands with jerky movements. Magnus let out a low moan as Alec's come made everything so much slicker, keeping up the pace until Alec began to whimper, then let go of Alec's oversensitive cock and stroked himself a few more times, hard and fast. Alec opened his eyes just in time to see the expression of rapture on Magnus' face as he came into his own fist.

Magnus dropped his head to rest on Alec's shoulder, both of them breathing hard. Unfortunately, they didn't really have time to bask in the afterglow - any moment now, a flight attendant would probably come knocking on the door, and Alec would probably die of embarrassment if he had to do the walk of shame escorted by a flight attendant. They both washed their hands and grabbed some tissues to clean up, then Alec left first, legs shaky and face red, but keeping his head high and studiously not looking at anyone, just in case someone had figured out what he and Magnus had been up to. 

He sank into his seat feeling pleasantly boneless, the tingling aftershocks of his orgasm still coursing through him. He couldn't believe he'd actually gone through with it, that he'd - what had Magnus called it? - joined the mile high club. Although he wasn't sure if that had counted as sex. Had he just lost his virginity in an airplane toilet? Alec wasn't sure, but it definitely counted as  _something_. 

Magnus came back to his seat just as Alec was dozing off, stepping nimbly over Alec's legs so Alec didn't have to stand up. He flashed a smile at Alec, and Alec smiled back, feeling tingly all over again at the memory of what they'd just done. Alec wished he could hold Magnus a little closer, but maybe that wasn't a thing that was done? He watched Magnus settling down, fussing with the flight-issued blankets, and tentatively left one hand outstretched, palm up, between them. Magnus looked down at his hand and quickly took it, flashing an even brighter smile at Alec as he laced their fingers together.

  

 

Alec woke up groggily to the landing announcement, Magnus' hand still in his. They'd slept through the breakfast service, but Alec supposed it was probably no great loss. Besides, there was a sick feeling in the pit of his stomach, and Alec didn't really have much of an appetite at the moment.

They were both silent as the plane landed smoothly and taxied round the runway before coming to a stop. They lingered, letting the other passengers get off the plane first, and Alec told himself it was just sensible to avoid the rush since he wasn't in a hurry. When most of the passengers had already left and the flight attendants were coming round to clear up, Alec got up and passed Magnus his bags from the overhead bin without saying a word, although he did quirk a smile when he saw that Magnus' carry-on bags were _huge_ , barely within regulation. They made their way through customs and to the baggage claim area together, and when Magnus was finally done pulling his stuff off the baggage carousel, the sick feeling in Alec's stomach had grown so bad that it was almost a physical ache.

This was it, he thought as they rolled their trolleys out into the arrival hall. This was where they had to say goodbye.

"Are you, um, going to be in London for long?" Alec blurted out. 

"I'm only stopping over. I have a train to catch - right about now, actually," Magnus said regretfully. 

"Oh. Right." It wasn't supposed to be serious, of course. What was Alec thinking? Don't make it weird, it's just a hook-up, that's all. 

"But you know what, we should exchange numbers, just in case we're ever in London at the same time again," Magnus suggested.

"Yeah," Alec nodded, trying not to sound over-eager.

They exchanged phones so they could key in their own numbers, and Alec couldn't quite hide his grin when he got his phone back and saw that Magnus had entered his name with a bunch of airplane and heart emojis at the end. 

"I guess this is it. See you around," Magnus said. 

"Yeah, see you around," Alec agreed. Then Magnus leaned forward impulsively and kissed Alec, and Alec kissed him back eagerly. He was already trying to slide his tongue into Magnus' mouth when someone bumped into him from behind, and he remembered where they were: in the middle of a crowded airport, in broad daylight.

"I'm going to miss my train, and I'm almost sure that it'd be worth it," Magnus said when he pulled away reluctantly. 

"No, go catch your train. I'll call you once l know my schedule, and we could, you know, arrange to meet up," Alec said. 

"Sounds like a plan," Magnus agreed, stole another quick kiss, and picked up his bags. "Call me."

"Yeah," Alec promised, and watched Magnus hurry off.  

He turned around to wave at Alec one more time before Alec lost sight of him in the crowd. 

 

 

Maryse had insisted that Alec get a taxi from the airport, even though he'd really wanted to try the trains, and in the end Alec had given in and promised his Mum, even though travelling by car would take longer. Anyway, what with all the luggage he had with him, Alec had to admit that perhaps his mother had been right. He dozed off along the drive from the airport to the university town, and woke up to narrow one-way streets and quiet, sleepy rows of houses. He had found some off-campus lodging, renting a room at the house of a history professor named Ragnor Fell, and from their communication via phone and email, Alec was pretty sure they'd get along ok. 

"You must be Alexander," said the middle-aged man who answered the door. 

"Yeah. Um, it's good to finally meet you, Professor Fell," Alec said, sticking out a hand.

"Call me Ragnor, please," he said, shaking Alec's hand and stepping aside.

Ragnor's house was cluttered with a sorts of odds-and-ends, with teetering stacks of books balanced precariously on every surface and the narrow hallway made narrower with a collection of mismatched wooden end tables. The carpet was a mess of flowery designs and clashed horribly with the fading wallpaper, a complete contrast to the bland neutrals and prim decor of the Lightwood house, and Alec loved it.

"I'd help you with your bags, but I'm afraid my back isn't what it used to be," Ragnor said. "I believe I mentioned that the son of an old friend would be staying with me as well? He's going to be at Cambridge as well for his master's, and he can be a bit much, but he's a good lad at heart. Let me just go get him." 

"It's ok, really, I can manage-" Alec began.

"Magnus! Magnus, come down and meet my other guest," Ragnor called up the stairwell, and Alec froze. _Magnus?_  

He looked up, and sure enough a very familiar pair of legs came down the stairs. Magnus paused when he spotted Alec, then took the rest of the steps at double the pace.

"Alec?" 

"Ah, now I see. So this is the boy you met on the plane and couldn't stop talking my ear off about," Ragnor teased, laughing when Magnus quickly shushed him. "I'll leave the two of you to it then. Dinner is at 7," Ragnor said, winking at Alec, before he disappeared round a doorway. 

"Hi," Alec said, feeling a little light-headed again. Why did Magnus always seem to have that effect on him? 

"Hi," Magnus replied, grinning from ear to ear. "So Alec is short for Alexander?" 

"Yeah."

"Well, Alexander..." Magnus was so close that Alec could count every eyelash, close enough to kiss. "...where did we leave off this morning?" 

 

 

 

**Author's Note:**

> We're still taking prompts for [Round One of the Shadowhunters Kinkmeme](https://shadowhunters-kink.dreamwidth.org/715.html)! Just pop in a prompt for a fic you'd like to read, and see if it catches anybody's fancy. You can also fill a prompt if you feel up to it. All prompts are anonymous ;)


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